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Mavs seek 2-0 series advantage over Lakers

May 4, 2011 - 2:31 PM (Sports Network) - Dallas certainly got the Lakers attention in the opener of its Western Conference quarterfinals series.

Now, the underdog Mavericks hope to seize control of the set with the two-time defending NBA champions when the teams collide in Game 2 of the series tonight at Staples Center.

Dirk Nowitzki made two big free throws with 19.5 seconds remaining on Monday, as the Mavs erased a 16-point deficit to edge the Lakers, 96-94, in Game 1.

Nowitzki ended with 28 points and 14 rebounds for the third-seeded Mavericks, who needed six games to beat Portland in the first round. Jason Terry added 15 points off the bench.

"We stick together and find a way," Terry said. "This wasn't our best game but we're not going to quit."

Kobe Bryant finished with 36 points and five rebounds for the second-seeded Lakers, who defeated the Hornets in six games to advance.

"We felt like we gave the game away," Lakers head coach Phil Jackson said. "I'm not so sure Dallas didn't outplay us, but the players felt like we gave it away.

"The game was won in the third quarter when we got the lead and stopped playing defense and stopped playing offense. It took a lot of energy out of us and gave a lot of energy to them."

Pau Gasol donated 15 points and 11 boards, while Lamar Odom tallied 15 and 12 in defeat as the Lakers scored just two points the final 3:32 of the game.

"We maybe got a little carried away," Gasol said. "We didn't make good decisions offensively and we paid the price defensively. We gave them a chance that way. We got a little too excited at that particular time."

Shawn Marion's short jumper pulled Dallas within one, 92-91, with 1:20 remaining. After Bryant made a 10-foot jumper, Nowitzki answered with a trademark fadeaway to make it a 94-93 game with 40 seconds to play.

Bryant then made a costly mistake while driving to the basket. Great defense by the Mavericks forced the All-Star to kick the ball out, and Terry was there for the steal.

Gasol fouled Nowitzki at the other end and the German superstar calmly made both shots to give Dallas a 95-94 edge with 19.5 seconds to go.

Another big turnover hurt the Lakers on their ensuing trip down the floor. Gasol was doubled beyond the three-point arc and tried to hand the ball off to Bryant. The two Laker players collided and Jason Kidd picked up the loose ball.

Kidd was immediately fouled and made 1-of-2 from the charity stripe to give the Mavs a 96-94 margin with 3.1 seconds to play.

Bryant had a good look at a three-pointer, but his shot was off the mark at the buzzer.

"It seemed like that ball took forever to come down," Chandler said on Bryant's potential game-winner. "Once I saw it hit rim, I probably was the happiest person in the room ... you kind of are grown to expect him to make those shots. When he had another chance at it, I was like come on we have to play some (defense) because I grew up in LA and I've seen this too many times."

The win was quite a breakthrough for the Mavericks came into Monday's contest with an 0-10 mark on the road against the Lakers in the playoffs and a miserable 11-53 regular season mark against the champs in Hollywood.

"We can say that we didn't play our best game, but we found a way to win," Kidd said. "That's the bottom line this time of year ... the Lakers have been in this position a lot of times and they've found a way to win the series, so we haven't done anything yet."

Nowitzki finished with 11 points in the fourth quarter, including four in the final 40 seconds.

"I've basically seen it all in this league," Nowitzki said. "It's my 13th year. I've got to be ready for anything."

The teams finished with identical 57-25 records during the regular season, but the Lakers won the season series, 2-1, to earn home-court advantage in the first playoff meeting between the teams since 1988.

Dallas and LA have met three times previously in the playoffs with the Lakers taking all three sets, a 4-1 series win back in 1983-84 West semifinals, a 4-2 triumph in the '85-86 West semis, and a seven-game triumph in the '87-88 West finals.

Game 3 of the set will shift to Dallas on Friday.